Flooring and Paint Price Increases: Mohawk +7% on Jan 4, Sherwin-Williams +8% Now. Buy or Wait?

Flooring and paint price increases are already set heading into 2027: Mohawk will raise flooring prices up to 7% on all product categories for shipments from January 4, 2027, and Sherwin-Williams raised prices 8% at its paint stores on September 1, 2026. On one bedroom that is about $49 on flooring and $10 on paint, so plan rather than panic-buy. On a whole-house floor it is a few hundred dollars, and timing starts to matter. (Figures as of October 2026.)

Flooring and paint price increases announced

• These are manufacturer prices to dealers. When your store's tag moves depends on its old-cost stock and sales calendar; no retailer-level date was found for any of them.
• "Up to 7%" is a ceiling. Mohawk says the increase varies by product line.
• Why: Mohawk cites raw materials, freight, energy, packaging and labor, and had already raised freight charges in late September.
• Producer prices by material: our monthly home building material price index tracks BLS producer prices for paint, flooring, tile, lumber and drywall.
• Tariffs: Catalina Research estimates tariff charges on imported flooring at $1.9 billion in 2026, 15.2% of the landed value of imports, up from roughly 7% in 2024. Imports are expected to fall about 8% this year as sourcing moves from China (down to a 1.7% share of US supply) to Vietnam and others.

What 7% and 8% cost on a real room

Floor area + 10% waste × price per sq ft, the same method as the flooring calculator. Prices per sq ft are examples.

Paint: a 12×12 room with 8 ft ceilings takes about 2 gallons for two coats; at $60 a gallon, 8% is $9.60. A 15-gallon whole interior at $60 is $900, so +$72; at $80 a gallon, +$96.

Put the increase in the budget as a line, which is what a renovation contingency is for.

Flooring: buy before January 4 only if…

All three must be true: you will definitely install, you know the exact quantity, and you have a dry place to store the boxes.

Buy early when:

• You install between now and about March. Dealers will sell old-cost stock for a while, but no one can say how long.
• The job is large: 7% on a $4,400 floor is $308.
• You've chosen the product and measured. Read how much flooring you need first; the wrong quantity bought early is the costliest "saving".

Wait when the project is a "maybe", you haven't picked between two products, or the store won't take back unopened boxes. Get the return policy in writing; a restocking fee of even 10% wipes out a 7% saving, and a holiday sale on the same line can beat the increase.

If you buy, buy the whole job in one order (lots can differ in colour), add 10% waste, and keep the spare box sealed until the floor is done.

Carpet: Dixie's increase of up to 5% applies from November 2 orders, so carpet shipping in 2027 will likely carry it.

Paint: the increase has already happened

The Sherwin-Williams 8% took effect September 1. What you still control:

1. Buy the whole job at once, once the colour is final, ideally in a sale window; tint each room's gallons in one visit.
2. Use the paint calculator. Over-buying two gallons costs more than the whole increase on a bedroom.
3. Price the tiers. The gap between mid and top grade can exceed 8%; What is paint? explains what separates them.
4. Don't stock up years ahead. Cans that freeze or bake in a garage can spoil. Buy for this job plus a touch-up quart.

The 8% is for Sherwin-Williams' own store group. No matching notice from other paint makers was found as of mid-October 2026.

Common mistakes

• Buying before measuring. A 10% quantity error beats the 7% rise.
• Comparing to remembered prices. Increases are by product line; compare current tags.
• Forgetting the rest of the order: underlayment, transitions, baseboard and adhesive are priced separately.
• Paying a deposit to "lock" a price without asking whether the quote is tied to a price date.
• Postponing a repair. Water damage or peeling paint costs more than 7%.

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